Lakeland Fire + Safety Issues Shareholder Letter and Provides Corporate Update
Rhea-AI Summary
Lakeland Fire + Safety (NASDAQ: LAKE) issued a shareholder letter covering fiscal 2026 (year ended Jan 31, 2026) noting strategic progress but results below expectations.
Key items: four accretive 2024 acquisitions; 2025 integration; signed a $5.6M three-year Hong Kong services contract and a $3.1M Italian boot shipment; Decatur warehouse sale-leaseback for $6.1M producing a $4.3M gain; acquired Arizona and California PPE Recon (~$5M ARR); pursuing ~$178M in global tenders including ~$38M in high-probability opportunities. Management bought shares to signal confidence.
Positive
- Secured a $5.6M three-year contract with Hong Kong Fire Services
- Shipped a $3.1M fire boot order to Italian Ministry
- Completed $6.1M sale-leaseback of Decatur warehouse with a $4.3M gain
- Acquired PPE Recon businesses adding ~$5M annual recurring revenue
- Pursuing ~$178M in global tender opportunities, incl. $38M high-probability
Negative
- Revenue and gross margin shortfalls reduced near-term profitability
- New tariffs, freight increases, and raw material inflation raised costs
- Supply-chain disruptions and certification delays disrupted execution
- Revenue misses had disproportionate negative impact on EBITDA
Key Figures
Market Reality Check
Peers on Argus
LAKE fell 1.07% while peers were mixed: PLCE (-0.91%), SGC (-1.42%), JRSH (-0.32%), JL (-5.71%), and LITB (+3.45%). The move appears more company-specific than sector-driven.
Historical Context
| Date | Event | Sentiment | Move | Catalyst |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 13 | Product certification | Positive | -2.4% | NFPA 1970:2025 certification for new Ultimate Glow+ firefighting gloves. |
| Dec 18 | Contract award | Positive | +0.8% | Single-supplier fire equipment tender win with ANAC in Argentina. |
| Dec 09 | Earnings results | Negative | +0.0% | Q3 2026 results with net loss, margin compression, and guidance withdrawal. |
| Dec 03 | International order | Positive | +4.6% | Malaysia order for firefighter PPE reinforcing Southeast Asia presence. |
| Nov 25 | Conference call | Neutral | +4.8% | Announcement of upcoming Q3 2026 earnings conference call and webcast. |
Recent news often produced mixed reactions, with more instances of price divergence than alignment following announcements.
Over the past few months, Lakeland issued several operational and commercial updates, including product certification, international tenders, and orders in Argentina and Malaysia. An earnings release for fiscal Q3 2026 highlighted revenue growth but weaker profitability and guidance withdrawal. Earlier, a conference-call announcement preceded a positive move. Today’s shareholder letter echoes earlier themes: international fire-service wins, integration of recent acquisitions, efficiency efforts, and balance sheet actions, but also acknowledges that near-term revenue and margin performance lagged expectations.
Market Pulse Summary
This announcement combines candid acknowledgment of fiscal 2026 underperformance with detail on contracts, acquisitions, and balance sheet actions. Management cites a $6.1M warehouse sale yielding a $4.3M gain, about $5M in added recurring revenue from PPE Recon, and roughly $178M in tender opportunities. Investors may watch execution on cost efficiencies, integration of four acquisitions, conversion of the tender pipeline, and how these steps affect revenue growth and EBITDA over fiscal 2027.
Key Terms
ebitda financial
m&a financial
AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.
HUNTSVILLE, Ala., Jan. 26, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lakeland Industries, Inc. ("Lakeland Fire + Safety" or "Lakeland") (NASDAQ: LAKE), a leading global manufacturer of protective clothing and apparel for industry, healthcare and first responders, today issued a letter to shareholders from Jim Jenkins, President, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman.
Dear Lakeland Shareholders,
Lakeland Fire + Safety’s fiscal year 2026, which ends January 31st, was underscored by both opportunities and challenges. While we made meaningful strategic progress, our financial results did not meet our expectations, nor those of our shareholders. We recognize that clearly, and we are taking decisive actions to address it.
During 2024, we completed four accretive acquisitions that expanded our product portfolio, geographic reach, and service capabilities, as part of our strategy to build a portfolio of premier global fire brands in a fragmented
There were notable commercial wins during the year. We secured a
Lakeland LHD secured a contract renewal of up to 12 years with Fire and Emergency New Zealand, extending a relationship that spans more than 22 years. More recently, we were awarded a fire equipment tender by ANAC, Argentina’s National Civil Aviation Administration, which included Eagle structural suits and gloves, Veridian boots and hoods, Pacific Fire helmets, and Lakeland proximity suits. Our ability to offer a broad, integrated, multi-brand Fire + Safety portfolio was a key differentiator in securing this award.
Despite these wins, external and internal factors combined to materially impact our results. New tariffs, freight cost increases, raw material inflation, and broader supply-chain disruptions affected both Lakeland and our peers. In addition, we faced political uncertainty in certain markets, certification timing delays, and material flow challenges. These issues disrupted execution, reduced forecast visibility, and resulted in revenue and gross margin shortfalls. Because our business model relies on operating leverage, these revenue misses had a disproportionate impact on EBITDA.
We do not view these challenges as structural demand issues. Rather, they are execution, timing, and cost challenges, and we are addressing them directly. During the year, we completed a
We continue to view M&A as a strategic lever, but with increased selectivity and a sharper focus on returns and integration. During the year, we acquired Arizona PPE Recon, Inc. and California PPE Recon, Inc., which together generate approximately
Looking ahead, our focus is on accelerating growth while improving execution and profitability. Fiscal 2027 is shaping up as an important year as we enter multiple global tender cycles with a significantly stronger and broader product portfolio. We are actively pursuing approximately
While macroeconomic uncertainty remains, our long-term strategy and market positioning are unchanged. As a tangible expression of confidence in Lakeland’s future, I have recently made open-market purchases of Lakeland common stock, and other members of our management team have also increased their ownership through open-market purchases.
We look forward to updating you on our progress throughout 2026.
Sincerely,
Jim Jenkins
President, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman
About Lakeland Fire + Safety
Lakeland Fire + Safety manufactures and sells a comprehensive line of fire services and industrial protective clothing and accessories for the industrial and first responder markets. In addition, we provide decontamination, repair and rental services that complement our fire services portfolio. Our products are sold globally by our in-house sales teams, our customer service group, and authorized independent sales representatives to a strategic global network of selective fire and industrial distributors and wholesale partners. Our authorized distributors supply end users across various industries, including integrated oil, chemical/petrochemical, automobile, transportation, steel, glass, construction, smelting, cleanroom, janitorial, pharmaceutical, and high-tech electronics manufacturers, as well as scientific, medical laboratories, and the utilities industry. In addition, we supply federal, state and local governmental agencies and departments, including fire and law enforcement, airport crash rescue units, the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security and the Centers for Disease Control. Internationally, we sell to a mix of end-users directly and to industrial distributors, depending on the particular country and market. In addition to the United States, sales are made into more than 50 foreign countries, the majority of which were into China, the European Economic Community ("EEC"), Canada, Chile, Argentina, Commonwealth of Independent States (“CIS”) Region, Colombia, Mexico, Ecuador, India, Uruguay, Middle East, Southeast Asia, Australia, Hong Kong and New Zealand.
For more information about Lakeland, please visit the Company's website at www.lakeland.com.
"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995
This press release contains estimates, predictions, opinions, goals and other "forward-looking statements" as that phrase is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements include, without limitation, references to the Company's predictions or expectations of future business or financial performance as well as its goals and objectives for future operations, financial and business trends, business prospects, and management's expectations for earnings, revenues, expenses, inventory levels, capital levels, liquidity levels, or other future financial or business performance, strategies or expectations, including without limitation our M&A strategy and beliefs regarding probabilities of success for tender opportunities. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, which address Lakeland's expectations of sources or uses for capital, or which express the Company's expectation for the future with respect to financial performance or operating strategies, can be identified as forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions as described from time to time in press releases and Forms 8-K, registration statements, quarterly and annual reports and other reports and filings filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission or made by management. As a result, there can be no assurance that Lakeland's future results will not be materially different from those described herein as "believed," "projected," "planned," "intended," "anticipated," "can," "estimated" or "expected," or other words which reflect the current view of the Company with respect to future events. We caution readers that these forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. The Company hereby expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any such statements to reflect any change in the Company's expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which such statement is based, except as may be required by law.
Investor Relations
Chris Tyson
Executive Vice President
MZ Group - MZ North America
949-491-8235
LAKE@mzgroup.us
www.mzgroup.us
FAQ
What did Lakeland (NASDAQ: LAKE) report for fiscal year 2026 ending Jan 31, 2026?
What material contracts did Lakeland announce in January 2026 (LAKE)?
How did the Decatur warehouse sale affect Lakeland’s balance sheet (LAKE)?
What acquisitions did Lakeland complete and what revenue do they add (LAKE)?
What tender pipeline is Lakeland pursuing for fiscal 2027 (LAKE)?
How is Lakeland addressing recent execution and cost challenges (LAKE)?
